World Jewish News

DR. ALEKSANDAR PAJIC (left), Serbia’s assistant minister of education, and Dr. Eyal Kaminka, director of Yad Vashem’s International School for Holocaust Studies, sign the agreement in Jerusalem, July 31, 2017. (photo credit:YAD VASHEM)

Yad Vashem signs first seminar agreement with Serbia’s Education Ministry

The agreement was signed in the presence of Assistant Minister of Education Dr. Aleksandar Pajic at the conclusion of a professional development seminar at Yad Vashem’s International School for Holocaust Studies in Jerusalem.

Thirty educators from Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina participated in the seminar, during which Biljana Stojanovic of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development delivered a presentation about the ministry’s work in Holocaust education.

For many years, Serbian teachers have participated in workshops and educational seminars run by Yad Vashem for teachers and community leaders from all over the world.

“Our pedagogical approach is respected as one of the best methodologies to deal with this most sensitive topic,” said Dr. Eyal Kaminka, director of Yad Vashem’s International School for Holocaust Studies, who signed the agreement on behalf of the center. “We have governmental partnerships with more than 50 countries around the world and are thrilled to officially add Serbia to this prestigious group.”

Until now, educators from Serbia who participated in seminars at Yad Vashem did so in an unofficial capacity. Now Serbian teachers will receive full accreditation for their participation and the number of seminars offered to them is set to increase.

Serbia has been one of International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s 31 member countries since 2011, and Bosnia and Herzegovina became an observer country in 2016.

Holocaust education is part of the national high-school curriculum in Serbia, integrated into courses in history, sociology, philosophy and religion.

After Serbian educators participated in teacher training in Yad Vashem, senior high-school students have conducted research projects on the life of the Jewish population in Serbia before, during and after World War II. The aim of these projects is to raise public awareness of the Holocaust, particularly among young Serbians.

Each year, the International School engages some 300,000 students, and thousands of educators, community leaders and decision-makers from around the world. It offers educational materials, teaching tools and teacher-training activities in order to develop programs suitable for diverse age groups and cultures.

By Tamara Zieve

JPost.com